[jimworcs]

For those people living in Europe, the European Court of Justice has just ruled (July 29th) that passengers can pursue compensation over cancelled flights or other disputes through courts in either the city of departure, the city of arrival or the city where the airline is registered. This ruling came about in a lawsuit filed in Munich against Air Baltic which the airline sought to have thrown out because it required all legal claims to be filed in Riga. This will have big implications for airlines.

Many people have been prevented from seeking legal redress against the airlines because they have had the cases dismissed, requiring disputes to be settled in their own jurisdiction, as per their terms and conditions. This acts as a deterrent to a passenger, who may have travelled on Ryanair within Italy for example, but would be forced to file suit in Dublin. Under this new ruling, the lawsuit can be filed in the location chosen by the passenger.

I hope this will have the intended effect of making it easier to get your rights enforced...